Barlow, Peter

Peter Barlow, (born October 13, 1776, Norwich, Norfolk, England—died March 1, 1862, Kent), optician and mathematician who invented two varieties of achromatic (non-colour-distorting) telescope lenses known as Barlow lenses.

Self-educated, he became assistant mathematics master at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, in 1801. He published numerous mathematical works, including New Mathematical Tables (1814). Later known as Barlow’s Tables, this compilation of factors and functions of all numbers from 1 to 10,000 was considered so accurate and so useful that it has been regularly reprinted ever since.

In 1819 Barlow began work on the problem of deviation in ship compasses caused by the presence of iron in the hull. For his method of correcting the deviation by juxtaposing the compass with a suitably shaped piece of iron, he was awarded the Copley Medal of the Royal Society. He also conducted early investigations into the development and efficiency of the electric telegraph.

Barlow constructed (1827–32) his first achromatic telescope lens by enclosing liquid carbon disulfide between two pieces of glass. His second lens (1833) was a combination of flint and crown glass. The Barlow lens has come into general use for increasing the eyepiece power of any optical instrument.